OSHA Expected To Release COVID-19 Temporary Safety Standard Soon
On April 27, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) sent a draft of its COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) to the Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB) Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA). This step is the first one toward finalizing the ETS.
While the specific requirements of this policy are not yet known, OSHA apparently will issue two standards: one for high-risk industries and another for all other workplaces.
For high-risk industries, the new standard may include the establishment of a COVID-19 prevention plan, which would require businesses to conduct hazard assessments, identify measures to limit transmission, adopt absence policies that don’t punish employees for staying home when they’re sick, and ensure that COVID-19 policies and procedures are communicated to all workers, regardless of fluency in English.
While OMB and OIRA have 90 days to consider the policy, the standard could be issued within the next two weeks — and will take effect immediately.